Barcelona star Arthur agrees to join Juventus, deal close to completion

According to Goal.com Italy, Brazilian midfielder Arthur has agreed to join Juventus from Barcelona, thereby paving the way for the swap deal involving Miralem Pjanic.

Arthur has been heavily linked with a move to the Serie A holders in recent months, but a deal has not necessarily materialised due to his reluctance to consider a fresh challenge away from the Camp Nou.

However, it now appears that he has changed his stance and Goal.com’s Romeo Agresti reports that the Brazilian has agreed to sign for the Turin giants in an exchange deal which would see Pjanic move in the opposite direction.

The Blaugrana are understood to value Arthur at £63m (€70m), but they are only expected to receive £9m (€10m) as part of the swap agreement, given the Bianconeri rate Pjanic at around £54m (€60m).

Arthur is seven years younger to Pjanic and it certainly comes as a surprise that the Blaugrana are prepared to swap him for the Bosnian star ahead of the summer transfer window.

The experience of the former Roma man could be one of the reasons behind their transfer decision and it remains to be seen whether the 30-year-old will hit the ground running next season.

Meanwhile, Bianconeri boss Maurizio Sarri will definitely be pleased with the arrival of Arthur, who could evolve into a key player for the club in years to come.

The Italian has previously worked with Jorginho at Chelsea and Napoli and he apparently sees Arthur as a similar kind of player, whom he can build the club’s midfield around.

No official confirmation has been made by either club over the swap deal, but it is reported that the agreement could be confirmed by June 30 with the Blaugrana wanting to balance their books for the financial year.